


parallel lines

by theeternalblue, Tuesdayschildd



Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Romance, Varchie!Centric
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-17
Updated: 2020-06-17
Packaged: 2021-03-04 01:33:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,190
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24765472
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theeternalblue/pseuds/theeternalblue, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tuesdayschildd/pseuds/Tuesdayschildd
Summary: The distance between two points might be shorter than expected.Two friends will figure that out while working on their geometry homework.
Relationships: Archie Andrews/Veronica Lodge
Comments: 24
Kudos: 35





	parallel lines

**Author's Note:**

  * For [archiercnnie](https://archiveofourown.org/users/archiercnnie/gifts).



> ... or two geometry nerds write a fic!
> 
> A little birthday gift for Milly and also our first collab! Double the happiness

“If two sides and the included angle of a triangle are congruent to the corresponding parts of a second triangle, the triangles themselves are congruent.” Veronica takes a note as she explains the next step in the proof without looking up from her paper.

“Mmm-hmm.” Archie watches a piece of her hair fall forward over her glasses, dangling over her notebook enticingly as she speaks unbeknownst to her. His fingers twitch with intent. 

“So that’s it. We solved it in seven steps. Let’s move on.” She flips her geometry book to the next page. His has been open to the wrong one for the last hour. 

His fingers brush back the piece of hair before he even realizes his hand has left his side of the booth, curling the tendril behind her ear and out of her way in a gesture he could get used to.

His hand still hovers over the middle of the table when she looks up at him, blinking in confusion. “Sorry… it just looked like it was in the way,” he says sheepishly as he realizes what he has done. He’s sneaking past an invisible line they had drawn between them the first day she had walked into sophomore year and shook his world. 

More blinking. More staring.

 _God, I’m stupid_ , he thinks, feeling his cheeks turn pink in shame. This is Veronica. They’re _just friends._

Her tongue darts out to wet her lips before a small smile starts to crinkle the corner of her mouth. “Thank you.”

She turns her eyes down to the page again and reads the next question. “M is the midpoint of AD and BC. Prove AB is parallel to CD.” 

He pays no attention to the words coming out of her mouth, only the smile that stays on it as she speaks. 

_Well, okay then._ He’ll take that. She thinks it’s amusing, and nothing more. They can move on from this and go back to that friendship they’ve built for an entire year. Even through his relationship with Valerie...and hers with Chuck. Go back to that funny feeling in his chest each morning she greets him with a smile at school, or when she gives him that sweet look every time he brings her a cup of coffee, just the way she likes it. Two sugars and a drop of cream.

To keep himself busy instead of doing something stupid, he finally turns the pages of his book to catch up with her. And when he looks up, Veronica is watching him through her glasses, the smile still in place.

There’s a pause.

He mirrors her smile, but his eyebrows draw together in confusion. And she lets out a small laugh. _Is she… blushing?_

No. Of course not. Veronica Lodge would never. 

_Would she?_

\---

_Parallel lines. Parallel lines._

Veronica tries to focus on their math work again, but it proves to be difficult when Archie looks at her so intently. More so when he grazes her ear as he pushes her hair behind it. More so because lately it’s been hard not to think about him.

But they are friends. Good friends and as such, she’s helping him with homework and nothing else.

 _Parallel lines._ They won’t cross. They won’t intersect.

But she can’t stop smiling because this is _Archie_ . Archie and his soft smiles, his kind eyes, and the confused frown on his face. How long can she avoid the inevitable? Because even if she can tell the truth – _nothing has happened between them –_ she can’t deny she feels drawn to him.

It’s nothing new. Not really. From day one the smile and the blush that reached his ears captivated her. He was pure light, pure goodness, and it was so new to her. She wanted all he had to offer but at the same time, she feared she’d taint it. And even if they were close, they made sure to keep a safe distance. But the distance seems to have narrowed.

Archie takes his milkshake and drinks from it. The whipped cream leaves a small spot on the tip on his nose.

She doesn’t think twice about returning the favor and wipes the offending mark with her index finger.

“We’re even, Archiekins.”

And there’s the blush that reaches his cute-as-a-button ears.

“Thank you,” he stammers before he’s suddenly very interested in their homework again.

He pays as much attention as he can. Doing his best to understand something he admits doesn’t make any sense in the first place, but at the end of their study session seems to be clearer. Or so he says.

Even if she is adamant about each paying for their share of the bill, Archie covers it while she picks up her things, claiming it is the least he can do after a free tutoring lesson. He also uses that excuse to offer a ride home, to open doors for her, to offer his jacket when she says she’s cold.

These are definitely not parallel lines. These lines have started to turn.

He parks in front of the Pembrooke and turns off the engine.

“Thank you again, Ronnie.”

She looks at her lap, at her geometry book, knowing somewhere in there is Kevin’s drawing of a heart with Archie’s initials and hers because he was being childish and making fun of her. And she can’t stop herself from smiling. All the signs were there.

“Do you want to come up?” she asks tentatively and hates the hesitation in her voice and how it wavers. When she looks at him, his eyes seem disappointed.

“I promise my dad I’d be home for dinner.”

“Right.” She smiles anyway because she knows he’s not blowing her off. His dad must be waiting and he’ll be a good kid. She likes him because of that. “Goodbye, Archie.” She leans over to press a teasing kiss to his cheek but for some reason, he has the same idea, just the wrong side. Her lips accidentally brush against his in a peck that makes them pull back and look at each other with wide eyes.

And when she sees him, she realizes there’s nothing she can do to change this Archie. These feelings aren’t going to disappear. He’s still the same boy. Adorable. Sweet. She wants to draw her line across his. She reaches up and touches his ear, angling his face to kiss him again. Properly.

“Ronnie?” he breathes against her lips. “Really?”

She lets a sigh through her smile and presses her mouth to his, harder. He kisses back, tangling his fingers in her hair.

“I thought we were friends,” Archie mumbles when they come for air.

“We were. And now we’re more.” She kisses him again, and he pulls her to him, seemingly unable to be close enough.

“I love you,” he blurts out between kisses, and this time her smile becomes laughter before she notices his deep blush and sheepish face. Embarrassed by his feelings and his lack of filter. This is love. Maybe it always has been.

_Don’t mistake giddiness for mockery, Archiekins._

“I love you, too,” Veronica mumbles before a new kiss.


End file.
